Wednesday, 7 May 2025
I think it means if we love something or somebody, we are willing to go through the hardships and we will not choose to give up.
This makes me think of the concept of “endurance” in psychology. Many research and theories focus on improving endurance in sports. They are about whether we can jump higher or farther, run faster or longer, lift heavier objects, or hit more goals. In short, improving our endurance is a challenge to the limit of our physical ability.
I’m not an athlete but some of you are.
If we ask an athlete, say some champions of the sports day. He or she would probably tell us that this challenge is not just a challenge on our body, but also on our mind. Very strong will power and determination are needed to survive those tough situations.
But what are those key factors that help? Perhaps, love is one of the biggest reasons. There are many examples in our school lives. Besides the sportsmanship I saw on the sportsgrounds. I also see some of you practicing dancing, singing, and playing musical instruments day and night to perform a good show. Many more of you who are willing to sacrifice your interests when you are participating in numerous school events, activities or providing voluntary services. Thank God if you find something you really love to do. And these are certainly precious experiences that will help you endure more things in the future.
I have been talking about loving one thing only. I have not yet talked about loving a person. It is not limited to the romantic love relationships. We have different forms of love among our family and friends. Jesus also teaches us to love another. If “Love endure all things” is true, it becomes very important for us to love the people around us and show them. But, sometimes, some of us are quite reluctant to show love. Here I have gathered some opinions from you. If you still remember, I shared with you on the topic of “Spreading Kindness” in October this year. I asked in the morning prayer challenge about your difficulties in showing kindness to the people around you. I guess they are also some we meet when we want to show love.
To summarize your answers, I found the following difficulties. 1. People ignore me. 2. People misunderstand my motives. 3. I do not have the courage. 4. People do not need. Well, I would not have enough time to go through them one by one with you. I just hope that we will be more aware of the needs of one another. If we are willing to show love, we are helping each other to survive difficult situations. We all need love, but we need to learn how to show it. All we need is to open our mind and our heart.
Oh, by the way, your exams are starting. It is tough for many of us. It is easy for me to say if you love learning, you would endure all things. Yet, it is too soon to say we all love learning. I would not say all teachers love marking too. However, learning (for you) and teaching (for teachers) are processes that will lead us to explore many more possibilities in the future. If you already love some subjects, grasp every opportunity to learn more! If you are unsure about it at the moment, go search for it and do not stop. There will be a day when you realize that things you do today are bringing you to something or someone you love in the future!
Ms Suen SL
9 January 2023